The Radio Boys in the Thousand Islands eBook

“Yes, and then I ran back to the radio table
and telegraphed to Max Handy at Rockport,” added
Hal, taking up the narrative at this point and indicating
a disposition to volunteer details more readily.
“While I was still in the act of sending, two
of the them appeared and seized me. They took
me into their rowboat with Bud at the landing and rowed
to a yacht almost a duplicate of Mr. Perry’s.
We were confined in the cabin until after dark and
then put ashore on an island half a mile from here.
That was the last we saw of them.”

“But how did you get away?” asked Cub.

“We flagged a motor boat just a little while
ago. There were two men and two boys in it.
We told them our story and they volunteered to bring
us back here and see if you had returned. Hello,
Uncle James,” addressing Mr. Baker and seizing
the latter by the hand. “I didn’t
recognize you at first, though I knew you were coming.”

“Where is Alvin?” asked Mr. Baker anxiously.
“Didn’t you see him on the island over
there?”

“No,” Hal replied with a look and tone
of surprise. “That is another desert island—­not
a person there.”

“What does that mean?” demanded Mr. Baker,
turning to the prisoner. “You told us all
three of the boys that you took away from here were
together on that island over there.”

“I didn’t mean that,” the fellow
snarled, with something of a look of confusion, however.

“Well, what did you mean?”

“I meant they were on two islands not far apart;
the other fellow is on the island a little further
on.”

“Is that motor boat that brought you here down
at the landing yet?” Mr. Baker inquired.

“Yes,” Bud replied.

“I wonder if we couldn’t induce them to
make a run over to the island where this fellow says
he left my son and bring him here.”

“I think they’d be glad to do it,”
Bud replied. “They seemed to be very much
interested in this affair and offered to do anything
they could to help us.”

“All right; suppose you go down there and tell
them the situation. I suppose we could wait till
Mr. Perry gets back, but I can’t stand any delay
that isn’t absolutely necessary.”

“Why, where has your father gone, Cub?”
asked Hal.

“He started out to get police help,” answered
the boy addressed. “His first call was
to be at Rockport, but no doubt he’ll come right
back here when he gets the message I sent for him.
I telegraphed to our wireless friend, Max Handy, and
asked him to go down to the docks and tell father
what happened since he left. He’s on the
way now; maybe he’s talking to father this minute.”

“What was it that happened?” Bud inquired.

Cub gave a description of the visit of the four “owners”
of Friday Island and the dispute that resulted in
making a prisoner of one of them and sending the other
three away on a mission of restitution.

“I thought when I just saw you come up from
the landing that they had released you according to
agreement,” he added; “but on second thought,
I decided they couldn’t have had time to do
that; besides, when they left us they went in the
other direction.”